Selfie, twerk and geek chic all legit, says the Oxford dictionary

What do you mean you don’t know what the hell I’m talking about? Look it up, grandpa. No, really this time: Look it up.

The latest list of Oxford Dictionaries’ dictionary-worthy words (well online- dictionary-worthy, anyway) is out and what we can conclude is that soon we won’t have any idea what we are saying to each other.

And I for one am looking forward to it. It will be like serving in Congress or something, where everything is gibberish and not really meant to be understood anyway.

Looking at this quarter’s list, it seems the sophomore class at Palo Alto High School has taken over the dictionary. We’ve got selfie, apols, derp and Miley Cyrus’s favorite dance move, twerk, which allowed the blog Quartz to mark its Oxford dictionary post with an eye-popping picture of the pop singer in the act. Click City.

The most relevant addition to the dictionary for Quartz readers is probably “phablet,” a portmanteau of “phone” and “tablet” used to describe oversized smartphones. Other new words and phrases that resonate with Quartz include “bitcoin,” “internet of things,” and “space tourism.” We are less enamored of “vom,” which is shorthand for “vomit.”

You miss the point – perhaps for a better story. The OED does not prescribe or approve the use of words – it merely records them. In fifty years time a researcher trying to understand material written today will be able to turn to the dictionary to see usage and a definition.

http://www.siliconbeat.com Mike Cassidy

Dick,
I plead guilty to trying to have a little fun with the news. Your objection seems to center on the headline. I received a note from a former Mercury News editor with the same complaint. The headline probably should have said something like “Selfie, Tweek (etc.) gain perception of legitimacy with inclusion in the ODO. But then the passive construction police would be on me.